Sunday, 17 December 2017

No lecture this month - just a few christmas main course recipes. They should be cheaper than certainly a free range turkey, easier (I'm not sure - have never done one), and may be preferable to you for various other reasons.
Why not do something different this year? And I'm not just talking about the food ....
Personally I like to keep the christmas food as simple as possible. I have tested all the recipes printed out below. There are also websites to browse for those with special food needs.
When planning a meat dish, make sure your butcher will be able to supply what you need. Not all of this is standard stuff.
And if for you or your family, Christmas = Turkey: there are enough Sundays or otherwise in December for a bit of experimentation.

EAT:Veg: Brussels', beet, sprout tops, cabbage, celeriac, celery (with stilton!), corn salad, Jerusalem artichokes, carrots, salsify, kale, kohlrabi, landcress, leeks, parsnips, pumpkin/squash, rocket, spinach, swede, turnips, winter radish, endive, winter purslane.Meat: wood pigeon, pheasant, wild duck, goose, grouse, partridge, venison. Judging by the shooting going on outside, pheasant can't be that expensive! For (Christmas) game recipes, see www.gametoeat.co.uk/Fish: coley, megrim, clams, crab, cuttlefish, mussels, oysters, scallops, whiting.PLANT:
Shallots are traditionally planted on the shortest day. You can still plant garlic. They like sun, and woodash.
If you leave veg in the ground, apply a thick mulch (straw, bracken) for protection, and so as to get them out more easily.
Give brassica's some attention before the worst of the weather. Firm soil around the stems, mulch with rotted manure and support with canes if necessary. Pick off yellowing leaves.
As ground becomes vacant, dig it over and spread manure. Leave roughly dug in large clumps and the worms will break them up. Freezing and thawing of water in the soil will cause it to break up finely, so becoming easier to handle in the spring.

FESTIVE STUFFED PUMPKIN V
Needed: pumpkin/squash of the desired size. Or several small ones. You have to adjust the oven time to the size of the pumpkin: the times below are for a buttercup squash of just over a kilogram.
Preheat oven to 200°C. Cut top off pumpkin, clean out seeds and strings, put 2 tblsp of water in, oil the cut edges of pumpkin and lid, and bake both for about 40 mins, or till it's soft.
In the meanwhile, prepare the stuffing. I made two versions: I preferred (I), hubby (II). Take your pick, or mix and match: you can leave or add anything you like.
(I) 100g cooked barley (or rice, millet etc), 1 chopped apple, 1 onion, 25g chopped celery, 15g chopped hazelnuts, 1 tblsp raisins, chilli pepper, 1tsp paprika powder, ginger, cinnamon, thyme, sage, 1/2 tsp soy, chopped parsley.
Sauté the onion; after a few mins add apple, celery, raisins and spices, fry till the apple is soft. Mix in the rest and season.
(II) 100g cooked grain see above, 50g chopped carrot, 40g (goat's) cheese, 50g cooked white beans, onion, mushrooms, crushed fennel seeds, seasoning, chopped almonds.
Part-cook the carrot, drain and then saute with onion, mushrooms and fennel. Mix with the rest of the ingredients, season.
When you can prick the pumpkin meat with a fork, drain any leftover water from it and stuff, tightly, with ingredients of your choice. Put lid on. Lower oven to 180°C, and cook for about 20-30 mins, longer if the stuffing was cold. When you use cheese, take the lid off for the last bit so it gets brown and bubbly.
If you have too much stuffing, place the extra in a greased dish, cover, and put in the oven as well.

GARLIC BEEF (from Good Food)600g trimmed beef skirt, 1 tbsp black peppercorn, 6 garlic cloves, 4 tbsp red wine vinegar.
Crush peppercorns and garlic with a pinch of salt, stir in vinegar. In a non-metallic dish, rub beef all over with this paste. Leave in fridge for a few hrs, no longer. Rub the marinade off the meat, season with a little more salt. Make griddle or dry frying pan very hot. Cook until charred on each side – about 5 mins on each side for rare. If the cut is very thick, roast in a hot oven for 5 mins after searing. Put on a chopping board, rest for 5 mins before carving.
The size can vary from 300g to 800g so adjust your cooking times accordingly – smaller pieces will cook just on the griddle but thicker pieces may need to be roasted for a few minutes, once seared. As a steak, skirt is best served rare to medium-rare or it becomes tough. Also good for braising.

NUT ROAST for 6-8 V 30g butter, 2 finely chopped sticks of celery, 1 finely chopped onion, 360ml hot water, 1 tsp marmite/vecon, 550g ground nuts (cashews, almonds, brazils, peanuts), 2 tblsp flour, 4 tsp fresh herbs (if using dried 1 tsp), 160g bread crumbs, salt, pepper.
This nut roast is delicious. The slightly boring looks will improve if, after turning out, you put holly on top or something like that.
Melt butter, cook celery and onion in it for a few mins. Mix marmite/vecon into hot water and add to onion-celery mix. Stir flour into the nuts, then mix in herbs, crumbs, salt and pepper. Grease a loaf tin. Place mix in tin and press. Bake in oven for 40 mins at 180ºC, turn out and slice. Nice served with all the trimmings.
Variations:- you can substitute wine or milk for the water-and-yeast extract. A layer of sliced mushrooms and garlic is nice. Or fill with sage and onion stuffing.And if you need to really count the pennies, see Jack Monroe's recipes in the Guardian: a (Finnish inspired) dinner for under £2.50 a head.At www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/dec/04/jack-monroe-budget-christmas.

Friday, 1 December 2017

Alcohol and health was mentioned before: in the ‘drinking’ issue of December 2014. However, the issue can do with some more digging.

Every so often you read about the health-giving effects of, say, red wine, or how drinking alcohol in moderation might be good for your bones. These stories always mention ‘moderation’, which is of course an important problem.

I myself have never been particularly tempted by alcohol. I’m an eater, not a drinker. And after cancer treatment twelve years ago, I found that even one glass of wine made me feel the same as I had felt during the six weeks of chemoradiation. So that was it: never again.

My husband drinks regularly, but never even has a hangover. Mind you, he stays away from the cheaper stuff.

People are different. During your lifetime you learn what suits you or what you can live without. And what you can’t live without, regardless of the consequences.

I found some interesting websites about the pros and cons of alcohol [1].

Apparently, the older you are, the more you can drink, says a, possibly dated, study from 2002. Men over 85 years old can drink as much as 5 units a day without ill effects [2]. Hurray .....

However, just recently they found that the positive side of alcohol has been overstated [3]. Studies which showed that moderate consumption might be good for you, may have been misguided. The abstainers in them often included people who had cut back, or stopped drinking, because of ill health or old age. This made non-drinkers look like a far less healthy group than the general population [4].

The type of alcohol is not as important as the amount of alcohol consumed and the pattern of intake. The latest UK government guidelines tell us not to drink more than 14 units a week, best spread evenly over 3 or more days: 6 pints of beer, 6 glasses of wine, or 14 pub measures (25ml) of 10% spirits. That is, unless you’re young, old, thin, sick or on medicines .…… For the complete list, see [5].

Grate beet and apple coarsely. Mix. Whisk oil and vinegar, add garlic, salt, pepper. Dress beet and apple with 1/2 the dressing. Use remaining half to lightly dress the leaves - you may not need all of the dressing. In the centre of the dressed leaves, add mound of grated apple/beet. Core pears, cut into 1cm thick slices and arrange around the beetroot/apple mound. Break walnuts up a bit and arrange over leaves and pears. Finish with crumbled Stilton or goat's cheese, and pepper.

Chop the leeks. Boil up some salted water, add the spaghetti and leeks. Meanwhile melt butter, add marmite and 1 tblsp pasta water, mix. The spaghetti and the leeks will be ready at the same time. Drain; reserve the water. Pour the marmite mix over spaghetti, adding some reserved pasta water if required. Serve with plenty of cheese.

Sauté the onion in oil until it begins to soften, add mushrooms. Sauté until most of their juices have been released. Add garlic, sauté for 2 more mins. Grind the walnuts. Mix in the lentils, walnuts, broth, wine, thyme, savory, sage and bay. Season and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated. Remove bay and add: liquid, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and potato. Cook until the potato is soft, about 10 mins. Season. Chill for 1 hr.

Roll out one dough disk on a lightly floured surface into a 30cm round. Transfer to the pie dish, leaving an overhang. Fill with lentil mix. Roll out the remaining dough disk into a 10″ round. Place dough over the filling. Fold overhang over the top crust and crimp the edges. Brush the crust with milk. Cut three 6cm slits in the top. Let rest for 1 hr, or put in the fridge till tomorrow. Preheat the oven to 200°C. Bake for 30 mins. Reduce heat to 180°C; bake until the crust is golden and the filling bubbles, for 40-50 mins. Let cool for 20 minutes before serving.

And here it comes, finally, the drink!

MULLED CIDER

Two 500ml bottles of good strong dry cider, 3 squashed cardamon pods; a lump of ginger about the size of the top joint of a thumb; the rind of an orange without the pith; 1 star anise; 10 cloves; ½ tsp mixed spice; half a thinly sliced apple; a good slug of rum/brandy.

Stud the orange peel with cloves. Place everything apart from the rum/brandy in a pan, bring to the boil. Turn down the heat, simmer gently for 10 mins. Spices can of course be varied according to taste and the contents of your cupboard.

If you want to see more recipes for December, see other years (click on 2017 and then on December, on the right hand side). Or go to https://thoughtforfoodaw.wordpress.com, which still has eight recipes for this year.

For an alphabetical index of subjects, which you will see if youclick on 2017 > Decemberin the top right hand corner.

A burning sensation radiating up from your stomach to your chest and throat. Bloating, belching, a sour taste. It's typically most bothersome at night, and tends to occur in connection with certain activities, such as: after eating a heavy meal; bending over; lifting; lying down, especially when lying on our back.

Too much stomach acid?

Too little, more likely. Which is why treating it with the usual medications often in the long run has the opposite effect. They may soothe the pain today, but will cause major trouble later.

Why the confusion?

The contents of our stomachs must be acidic to trigger the release of food into the small intestine. When acid is too low, it won’t trigger this release. As a result, the trapped food shoots back up into the esophagus.

Our acid may be too low to digest the food, but it’s still too acidic for the delicate tissue of the esophagus. Hence that fiery pain of heartburn and acid reflux. We have too little stomach acid, but it is going where it’s not supposed to go [1].

To counteract this discomfort the doctor will prescribe antacids or proton pump inhibitors, PPIs. Antacids neutralize, but don’t affect secretion of new acid; PPI’s suppress the secretion of gastric juice entirely [2].

However, as explained above, most people who are taking these medications actually have too little stomach acid – not too much! The actual cause of low stomach acid is not addressed and often things get worse.

Stomach acid is very important for our digestion. It triggers the pancreas to secrete digestive enzymes, and makes the gallbladder secrete bile.Enzymes and bile help ensure proper nutrient absorption. They also protect against infections and parasites, and help the large intestine to function properly.

Chronically low stomach acid hinders these organs in their work and often leads to larger problems throughout the digestive tract [3].So lowering it via antacids or PPIs is, in most cases, the very last thing we should do.

But what should we do instead?

If you are already using PPIs, never stop taking them cold turkey. Wean yourself off gradually: see [4].

And to slowly heal your gut naturally, try the following.

As soon as you wake up, drink 1 tsp. unpasteurized/raw apple cider vinegar in warm water. You can add lemon. Or drink 125ml warm water 30 minutes before each meal and after meals. Or sip with meals, in a little bit of water.

Shallots are traditionally planted on the shortest day. You can still plant garlic.If you leave veg in the ground, apply a thick mulch (straw, bracken or newspaper) for protection, and so as to get them out easily.

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RECIPES

To find out what you can do with celeriac, see [10].

Here are two recipes with the Italian kale type, cavolo nero. Interestingly, one cooks it for 10, the other for 45 minutes. Strangely, both are lovely.

Cut cavolo into bite-size pieces. Sauté onion, garlic, salt, red pepper until soft, 4-5 mins. Increase heat, add orange juice, bring to a simmer. Add a few handfuls of kale and, as it wilts, continue to add a handful at a time, stirring constantly, until all the kale is in. Continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until all the kale is wilted - 10 mins? Season, serve immediately.

Fry onions, garlic and ginger in oil for about 15 mins. Add lamb and stir-fry until browned. Add spices, cook over the heat to release their flavours, then add almonds. Pour in the stock, season. Cover pan and simmer for 45 mins, stirring occasionally. Add apricots, simmer 15 mins more until lamb is tender. Thin with a little water if the sauce gets too thick. To freeze, cool, then pack into a container or bags. Keeps for 3 months.

Bring 2cm water to the boil, add the sliced cabbage, chopped onion, a bay leaf with a couple of cloves stuck in it (or some ground allspice), and raisins to taste. Cook slowly for 20 minutes, then add the chopped apple and a bit of salt. After 10 more minutes everything is cooked: take out bay and cloves. Pour off any liquid, or leave it in and use flour to thicken it. Add butter and stir, heat through. You might want to add a bit of vinegar and sugar (are you sure?): that depends on you and on the apple!

MARINADE for TWO PHEASANTS

100ml soy sauce, 4tblsp balsamic vinegar, bay leaves, chopped onion.

Mix everything and steep the pheasant - best cut in pieces - in it for a few hours or overnight. Cook as usual. It should take less long and have more taste!

Wash or peel the artichokes,cut into thin slices. Fry slowly until golden, then add bay leaves, 2 sliced garlic cloves, vinegar, salt, pepper, a tiny bit of water, and cover. Cook till they have softened, checking every so often whether they need just a drop more water. Remove lid and bay. Continue cooking for a couple of mins to crisp them up one last time, serve straight away.

December is unquestionably the most feverish month of the year. Which one of us does not feel their temperature rise when thinking of Christmas?

Even those who take a relaxed view of the festivities in general, find something to get het up about. The crowds and the inescapable carols. The relentless cheer, dutifully punctuated by thoughts for those less favoured than ourselves.

Even if all this hoo-ha leaves you cold, you could do worse than prepare yourself by reading up on fever. Just in case some unfortunate might need your attention in the coming weeks!

Fever is always a symptom of an underlying health problem. When you are sick, your body employs defense mechanisms to rid itself of the virus, bacteria, toxin, or inflammation. Raising the temperature is one such mechanism. The warmer you are, the faster your immune system works to heal you. And virus and bacteria don’t like heat.

We are used to seeing fever as an enemy: in fact it is a friend, and we fight it at our peril. [1]

So what should we do instead of grabbing a tylenol?

- drink plenty of water to prevent dehydration.

- rest. Rest! Don’t force yourself into work out of a misplaced sense of duty. Rest will heal you faster, and everyone benefits.

- there are herbs you can take to promote sweating and get rid of toxins. Chamomile, thyme, sage and mint for instance. [2]

- for children, a sponge bath may help bring the fever down a bit. “The biggest challenge is to keep children hydrated. Children that will drink fluids are usually safe using natural methods. ‘Dry’ fevers are dangerous as the child will not drink and this may necessitate going to the doctor.” [3]

- avoid anything with sugar, refined foods, caffeine andalcohol.

~~~~~

To counteract all the festive cheer, you might like to read 'The dark side of clinical trials', see column on the right.

Melt half the butter, fry apples until tender. (Stir in honey). Keep warm. Mix flour, salt, and pepper. Place crumbs in another shallow bowl, egg in another. Melt rest of butter. Dip fish in flour, egg, and crumbs. Place in hot pan, cook for 3-4 mins per side. The fillets should be brown and flake easily. Serve with the apples on top.

Sautee leeks until softened, added some stock and cook it all down for about 20 mins. Season. Add a tiny pinch of sage, and stir in some crème fraîche. Adding more stock and crème fraîche would make this recipe more of a sauce – a good topping for pastas.

Turn off the heat, add squash, mix well. Spread this evenly onto a greased baking sheet - keep the spicy pan for reuse. Bake squash for ab. 10 mins at 200°C. Take out, stir, and put back for 10-15 mins until soft and starting to brown.

Meanwhile, wash and chop greens. Melt 2 tblsp butter in spicy pan, add 2 tblsp of water. and sauté until done. If they start to stick, add a a bit more. When the greens are done, add squash, stir in lightly. Serve.

SWEDE and COCONUT DAAL serves 4-6

Good with for instance whole roast pheasant, but we had this with just boring cooked potatoes and green veg and loved it. If you haven’t got some of the ingredients just use your fantasy, but the coconut milk is essential.

Saute diced veg, season and sizzle till just softened and starting to colour up a bit. Add bay, chilli and cinnamon. Stir in the lentils, onion/garlic, ginger, cumin and coriander seed. Pour in coconut milk and water, cover. Simmer for 45 mins or till the liquid is absorbed into the lentils. Stir every so often. Add a little more water when needed. Taste, add more spices if you like. Season. Finish with a hit of lime/lemon zest, the juice, toasted coconut and/or almonds and fresh coriander.

Share out the pudding over the right number of glasses, or put in a large glass bowl. Peel citrus and slice into rings. Arrange these on top, sprinkle over some cinnamon. Put the custard on top of that. Whip the cream and add brandy or sugar if you wish. Just before serving, scatter almonds and zest on top.